


And Only Time Will Heal My Woe

by likebunnies



Category: Sleepy Hollow (TV)
Genre: Angst and Fluff and Smut, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Past Relationship(s), Plot What Plot/Porn Without Plot, Post-Season/Series 02
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-01
Updated: 2015-04-28
Packaged: 2018-03-20 17:08:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,221
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3658371
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/likebunnies/pseuds/likebunnies
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Maybe that was the reason that after six months, one week, and two days, he was able to think of doing more than just holding her at night.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Every Tear Would Turn a Mill

**Author's Note:**

> Oh, I haven't done this in a long while. Like a long, long while. So, yes, I'm making some things up here and trying my best. It's only fan fiction! There are a few more parts but honestly, this could be read all by itself.

~*~

It was four months, two weeks, and five days since he stabbed his own wife, thus saving Abbie. It was four months, two weeks, and five days before, on a cold and rainy night, he slipped into the room Abbie was sleeping in at the cabin and into her bed and held her close. Just held her, rocking her in his arms as together they both cried. It was also four months, two weeks, and five days before he could admit that he hated her for a while, for being alive while Katrina was not. But that he loved her, too. He always had. 

Crane had a great deal of experience with death, even his own. He had killed people before, watched them as their life slipped away and they became nothing but a husk, empty eyes staring into nothingness. He had even held a few people as they died, young soldiers under his care screaming out for their mothers or sweethearts or whatever God let boys bleed to death on a battlefield. 

But it was never anything like this death. Katrina's death by his hand, whether accidental or not. It was a pain that he thought would kill him. A pain he felt turned him into something unrecognizable. 

Only Abbie recognized him for the man he really was under that unbearably heavy cloak of anguish he wore. She had realized that it was going to take time before he could admit his feelings. It would be more time before he could fully transfer those feelings he once had for Katrina to her, if he could ever do that at all. She knew she would wait as many hours, months or years as it took. 

They had been in England for over a week now, leaving the US as soon Jenny had been able to use her connections to get Crane a better fake passport --- one that had his birth date right if not his birth year. They were seeing the countryside and all that changed since he had last called this place home. Crane was also trying to escape all the memories that Sleepy Hollow now held and all the anguish and anger he couldn't always contain. They toured Oxford and Merton College (with Crane grumbling about the entry fee when he should have been considered an alumni at the very least if not a faculty member) and were now staying at a small bed and breakfast that Abbie picked out on the internet. 

Crane was no longer as shocked by changes between the world he once knew and this one but he did find a certain solace in seeing things that were actually unchanged. The town was filled with bicycles and the students dressed differently but underneath it all, he felt he was somewhere familiar again. Somewhere safe in a world that he didn't think would ever be safe again. 

Maybe that was the reason that after six months, one week, and two days, he was able to think of doing more than just holding her at night.

“Can you forgive me?” he whispered in the dark, his arms wrapped around her. The fire in the hearth had nearly gone out and the room was getting chilly.

“For what?” Abbie asked. She held one of his hands, his long fingers entwined with hers. 

“For anything discourteous I might have said to you after I first lost her. I know I said many hurtful words, to you and to the others. I want to apologize, my love,” he said, kissing the top of her head. 

In the first few weeks following Katrina's death, he couldn't bring himself to speak of her at all, or of their child. Crane was so angry that he would lash out if at anyone or anything that set him off. He was torn between being angry that the woman he loved and trusted was gone and that same woman shattered his trust in such a painful way. He had lost his world and the last person he knew in it. 

“Anger is one of the stages of grief. I expected it. It really is okay, Crane,” Abbie says, shrugging her shoulders against his chest. He was still wearing his shirt, the ribbons untied since they returned to their room. And he had his drawers still on even if his breeches where folded neatly and placed over a chair with the rest of his clothing. Abbie wore her traditional sleep clothes – a shirt and yoga pants. She didn't know if he was ready for more than her wearing this to bed just yet. She wasn't even sure what she was ready for or what either of them expected of the other. 

Abbie released his hand and turned over in his arms, her head resting on the down pillow, her face a few inches from his. He had changed in other ways since his wife had died. His beard was fuller, not as neatly trimmed as it had been, and his hair even longer. He hardly ever tied it back anymore. For a while, a few months back, he had done nothing but hide out in Corbin's cabin and personal grooming slowly went to the wayside. Crane eventually climbed out of the lowest abyss of his grief and into the shower, but his hair and beard remained like this. She didn't mind. It tickled the few times they had kissed. 

“What would you like to see tomorrow?” Abbie asked, and he didn't answer her immediately. He brought his hand up and touched her hair, playing with a gentle curl that had formed near the ends. She should have wrapped it up in a scarf already but his arms were too comfortable.

“I thought, perhaps, if you'd like... we could spend the day here,” he answered slowly, his eyes meeting hers and holding her gaze. 

“That might get a little boring after a while, Crane.” 

“I guarantee, Lieutenant, that it will be anything but boring,” he said. His hand moved from her hair to her mouth, his index finger gently stroking her bottom lip. She flicked her tongue out and then drew his finger into her mouth, sucking softly. “Oh, Abbie...”

Their eyes remained locked on one another as she slowly took one finger and then another into her mouth, her tongue and lips making Crane imagine other things. She kissed each finger tip and then his palm before he could wait no more to kiss her. 

All of their previous kisses had been nothing more than a sweet kiss goodnight or goodbye. This was nothing of the sort. Her mouth opened under his and any bit of caution was swept away quickly. A soft, sweet moan escaped from the back of her throat as a hot spark moved through her body and settled somewhere between her thighs, making her ache for more. 

Crane moved them so her leg was hitched over his hip and she could feel his hardness. She moved and he moaned against her mouth before breaking the kiss and just watching her. 

“You sure about this?” Abbie asked. 

“I thought it was I who needed to ask the young lady? No means no?” 

“Okay, are we both sure about this?” Abbie said with a smile, always amused by what he was learning off the internet and television. 

“I'm in if you're... uh... I'm up for it if you... oh, God's wounds! Yes,yes, yes. A thousand times, yes,” Crane said, flipping her on the bed so he was cradled between her thighs. He gave her a quick kiss before he started sliding down her body, tugging her bottoms down as he went. She felt exposed but took a deep breath, telling herself that this was her partner. Her best friend. Nothing to be afraid of. He threw her clothing to the side and parted her legs just a little further, his eyes meeting hers before he leaned in, his tongue darting out and hitting the perfect spot.

“You guys did this back in the 18th century? I thought there were laws against this or something,” Abbie quipped. He stopped long enough to tell her once again that sex wasn't invented in the last century before his mouth went to work again. It wasn't long before he had something else to say. 

“Besides, this wouldn't be the only law we'd be breaking, especially considering it is Sunday and...”

“Crane!” she said, pushing his face right back where she wanted it before he could give her a long dissertation on the blue laws of 1781. 

He made her writhe like no one had ever before. Her hands were tangled in his long hair, making sure he didn't dare leave her like this. She didn't need to worry. He had no plans to go anywhere just yet. 

“Yes... like that,” she said, gasping as Crane slid first one finger and then another into her. He could do this all day and he enjoyed nothing more than learning what made her make that soft, sweet noise in the back of the throat. She was warm around his fingers. Hot. Very hot. If he crooked his fingers just right...

“Oh, yes!”

He also enjoyed learning that he could make her scream. 

Her body fell into slow, rhythmic spasms and he could feel her contract around his fingers but he didn't stop until she told him he had to or else. Or else what, he didn't find out. He looked up at her, a sly grin on his face, completely satisfied with himself. 

“You're a mess. Here,” Abbie said, pulling off her shirt and tossing it his way so he could attempt to dry his beard. When he was finished, he tossed her shirt to wherever her pants landed and he slowly made his way up her completely bare body, exploring and kissing her soft skin as he went. 

He was once again cradle between her thighs and kissed her again. She could taste herself all over him but she didn't care because she could taste him, too, and they made a potent combination. 

“You have on far too many clothes for what's going to happen next,” she said, tugging Crane's linen shirt over his head and placing the delicate fabric on the bed next to them. Her toes tried to work his drawers down but eventually he had to help, kicking them off the end of the bed. 

He was between her thighs again and Abbie stole a glance between their bodies as he took his cock in his hand and guided it into her. 'Nice' was the last thing she thought before she looked him the eyes again and held his stare. 

Slow. So slow that he could barely breathe, he began to push into her in as she wrapped her legs high around his waist. He knew that in these modern times, he was supposed to ask her about past partners and test results and protection but at the moment, he didn't really care. Well, he did care about the one thing. 

“Abbie, my love... is there a possibility you'll end up with child?” he asked and she shook her head. 

“Don't worry about that. I'll explain it all to you in detail later,” she answered, never taking her eyes off of his. Cocking an eyebrow, he almost asked for her to explain it now but she put a finger on his lips and with that and a quick kiss, he began to move. 

His hair hung down, moving with every move he made. Thrust after thrust, he moved his slender hips and she pushed back at him, letting him in deeper and deeper. Everything slowed down and nothing else mattered but the two of them, joined in this bed as close as they could possibly get. Two Witnesses becoming one for a while. He couldn't recall scriptures ever mentioning that happening. 

He wasn't hurried or rushed but completely in control. At least for now. With a perfect rhythm, he moved in and out of her, sometimes pulling out so far that she cried out in fear of losing contact with him. 

She brushed back some of his hair, tucking it behind an ear so she could see his face and his eyes. Both Abbie and Crane were now covered with a glistening sheen of sweat and the room smelled of the embers from the dying fire and of them. 

“I want to see you, Lieutenant. I want to see all of you,” he said. With a fluid movement, he rolled them over so she was now on top. His hand wrap around her tiny waist, still trying to maintain control of the situation. 

“I want to see you let go, Captain,” she said back to him. 

“Well then...”

He bucked his hips so hard that she nearly toppled backwards but caught herself in time. She leaned just far enough back to put her hands on his thighs to support herself and he continued to drive into her. Abbie met him stroke for stroke, crying out as it got more frenetic. 

One of his hands slid down from her waist to between her legs, his thumb circling her clit with the fervor as the rest of their movements. Abbie fell forward again, needing to see his face and to watch his eyes. 

It wasn't long before she was coming again, calling his name and feeling the world spin away from her once more. She gasped for air and when she was in control of all her faculties once more, she squeezed his cock with her inner walls and that was it. One last thrust and now he was coming right behind her. 

His eyes were closed tight as she drew everything out of him that she could, waiting for his body to stop moving before she leaned forward and kissed his lips. Turning them over once more, he stayed on top of her, not moving to pull out. Instead he placed delicate kisses all over her face. 

She would be happy to stay like this forever, her partner, friend, and lover beside her. Inside her. Above her. She knew he'd never forget this moment and she didn't want to, either. The look on his face as he stared down at her with eyes filled with adoration. 

Abbie didn't remember it ever feeling like this before. Maybe it was everything they had been through. Maybe it was the waiting for this moment. She didn't know but this was different. He propped himself up so he could talk to her, not wanting to separate at all. 

“Yes, I think we will be perfectly fine spending the day in the room tomorrow, don't you, Lieutenant?” he asked.

“Yeah, I think we'll be just fine.”

~*~


	2. Me, Oh My, I Loved Him So

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I guess then this is us reinventing ourselves,” Abbie said. “Not what I had in mind when I mentioned it a long time ago but it works.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is fan fiction. I had to make some stuff up about the Cranes that I couldn't quite figure out from watching season two a number of times. Yes, I'm *that* dedicated.

~*~

In the morning, Crane found Abbie soaking in the large cast iron clawfoot tub in the bathroom adjoining the bedroom. Abbie's hair was neatly tucked up on top of her head and she was surrounded by mounds of bubbles. Meanwhile his hair was everywhere and after the night they had, he desperately needed a bath.

“Come on in. The water's just fine,” she said. He was not at all bashful about standing before her naked as she gestured to the other side of the big tub. “There's enough room for everyone.” 

“Give me a moment, Lieutenant,” he said, holding up his index finger and then pointing to the private little room that contained the toilet. 

“Take your time. I'll wait.” 

He was back in less than a minute and slipping under the water opposite from her. Displacement caused some splashing and a few bubbles sloshed over the edge but with a little adjustment, they both fit comfortably even if Crane had to fold his long form up a little bit to do so. 

“Whenever the day may come that I am able to own a house, not only must it have granite counter tops, I'll insist it have a tub like this,” he said, playing with the bubbles and blowing a handful at her. 

“Turn around and come here,” Abbie said and he looked at her quizzically, an eyebrow arched up. “I'm going to wash your hair.”

He stood up briefly and did as she asked, turning his back to her as he quickly slipped back under the warm water once more. Abbie took the sprayer from the rack on the center edge of the tub and started up the water. 

“Tip your head back. Yeah, just... like... that,” she said, wetting down his messy hair. “Hold this. Don't spray everything.”

He took hold of the sprayer while she grabbed the tiny bottle of herbal shampoo left by the owners of the bed and breakfast on the small table next the tub. She washed his hair, getting it very sudsy and massaging his scalp gently. Crane let out a sigh of contentment as she went on playing with his hair. Abbie was surprised at how much longer it was wet and wondered if he was going to trim it soon. She rinsed out the shampoo and followed that with some conditioner. Once again, he got a nice massage and then she rinsed again. 

“All done,” she said, turning off the water and returning the sprayer to its holder. He squeezed the extra water out of his hair and jokingly piled it on top of his head to match hers. “Come here.”

He slipped back, settling between her legs as he sank down into the water so his head was resting on her chest. Abbie wrapped her legs around him and sighed at the quietness of it all. She wished it could last forever. The bubbles were fading away and the water was cooling down but she didn't care. 

“Something wrong?” Crane asked, taking one of her hands in his own and playing with her wet and wrinkled fingers. 

“Nothing we have to worry about today,” she answered, afraid to upset the peace they had finally found. 

“I, too, worry about how long it will stay like this. How long until evil finds us again,” he said softly, knowing exactly what she was thinking. 

“I guess then this is us reinventing ourselves,” Abbie said. “Not what I had in mind when I mentioned it a long time ago but it works.” 

“I'm certainly not displeased by the way events have unfolded over the last few days and last night was amazing,” he said before kissing the tips of her fingers. “I never imagined there would ever be anyone else after I lost her. I never imagined that there was a chance for a second soulmate, if you will.” 

“Is that what we are?”

“We are bound together by more than fate, Abigail Mills. We are together because we want to be together. Friends. Partners. Lovers...” he said softly and she chuckled a little. “What?” 

“You are so smooth, Crane,” she said and he looked up at her. “But you're right. We could've ended up as the two Witnesses who hated each other. We could have hated each other so much that an apocalypse would have been preferable to spending another minute together. Thankfully, that didn't happen.”

“Yes, this wouldn't have been as much fun with someone I hated,” he said, pulling her into a kiss. With a lot more splashing and quite of bit of water hitting the floor, Abbie ended up on Crane's lap, his back against the tub with her facing him. 

He kissed the line of her jaw, worshiping every inch of skin he could touch with his lips. His fingers did their fair share of worshiping, too, touching her breasts, moving down below the water and across her abdomen, down between her thighs. 

Abbie moaned under his touch and knew he was growing hard. She wrapped a hand around his cock, circling the head with her thumb. He let out a gasp and lost track of what he was doing with his own fingers. 

“You can't even imagine the things I want to do to you,” Abbie said, the movement of her hand causing ripples in the water. “Or how long I've wanted to do them.”

“Show me,” he said, his eyes meeting hers and locking on, the desire in them palpable. He wanted to be inside of her. Needed it. 

Abbie let go of him and stood up, water dripping down her body as she put a hand out to him. Crane stood up as quickly as he could and followed her out of the tub and into the room with the bed, the two of them leaving a trail of water behind them. Pushing him against the wall, her mouth explored his body, first lavishing attention on each of his nipples, her tongue circling around one and then the other. He grew very still and she moved lower, following the soft trail of hair down to his hard cock. Abbie's tongue darted out and she teased him until he politely begged for her to do more. 

Abbie didn't tease him for long, taking his length into her mouth, her tongue busily flitting all around. He moaned and repeated her name over and over as she worked her lips around him. He no longer seemed to know what to do with his hands, whether to put them on the wall behind him or on her head. Instead, he was frozen somewhere between, his long, graceful fingers suddenly -- and for the first time that Abbie could remember -- were stuck in some sort of suspended animation. 

She worked his shaft with one hand and her mouth, taking him in as far as he could go, not allowing him one second of relief as her soft lips moved with him as he started bucking his hips. Crane groaned and stilled when she slid a hand between his thighs and drew her nails carefully over his balls. 

She turned her eyes up to him to judge how he liked it. He didn't have to say a word. The look on his face was enough. He liked it. A lot. Too much? 

“Abbie, stop. I don't want to...” 

She stopped immediately. Not that she cared if he came in her mouth or not but he was pulling her up off of her knees. He lifted her up in one swift move, his hands under her bottom as her legs wrapped tight around his waist. Smiling because their height difference came in handy, she felt him slip into her with ease as he turned and pressed her against the wall. 

Her arms wrapped around his neck as he started to thrust into her as hard as he possibly could. “God... Crane...” Abbie tried to say more but his hips started to move faster, driving into her faster. Over and over. Faster and faster. He'd slide out just enough that she gasped out of fear of losing him before he'd push in again. His still damp hair stuck to his face, making him look a little wild. His eyes made him a look a lot wild. 

Flesh slapped against flesh and the room was growing hotter by the second. “Abbie... I...” Crane said, his voice asking for her permission to do the inevitable. 

“Yes. Go ahead,” she said, nodding. “Come for me, babe.” He arched an eyebrow up at her and she smiled. 

His thrust became less metered and steady but more raw and unrestrained. With one last push, he came completely undone and Abbie enjoyed watching him like this. Watching as pleasure moved across his face as his body rocked with spasms. 

Crane felt his legs beginning to go wobbly and they tumbled into bed, spent, Abbie wrapped in his arms. 

“We both need another bath now,” Abbie said. They were both glistening with sweat and still both breathing like they had just finished a race. 

“Oh, we have plenty of time for that. Babe.” They both laughed at the inflection he used when saying it. 

“We'll have to work on pet names. I mean, I'm perfectly happy with Lieutenant but you need something,” she said. 

“Captain Ameri--”

“Not going to happen.” 

The two of them fell into a comfortable silence, the only noise in the room the sound of their breathing and the clock ticking away the minutes on the mantel. 

“Abbie, tell me more about what it is you do so you don't end up with child,” Crane asked. 

She propped herself up on an elbow and looked at him. “What? Now?” 

“You said yesterday we could discuss it later. It is later,” he said. “Is it not appropriate for me to ask? I assumed, in the 21st century, this was something we should discuss. Probably before we...”

“No, no. It's fine. And you're right. You have every right to know, 21st century or not. You can ask me anything. And the answer is this implant here right under my skin. On my arm,” Abbie said, taking his fingers and leading him to the spot. He looked bemused and inspected the area, feeling it carefully. 

“I never noticed.”

“You weren't supposed to.”

“Is this permanent?” he asked, looking into her eyes instead of at her arm. Now he looked concerned. Very concerned. “Children are a possibility, aren't they?”

No matter how his last “child” turned out, Crane knew that he wanted them. Several of them. Someday. And he wanted them with Abbie. 

Abbie laughed and kissed him. “Yes. It's reversible but for right now, it's convenient. I don't have to think about it when we're chasing around the evil undead and I don't have to think about it before I have my way with you.”

“I like it when you have your way with me,” Crane said. Abbie snuggled up against him, her fingers circling around in his chest hair. 

“Can I ask you a question? You can tell me if it is none of my business,” Abbie said, her hand resting now on his stomach, feeling him breathe in and out. 

“You can ask me anything, Abbie,” he said, putting one of his hands over hers. She doesn't say or ask anything for nearly a minute and Crane begins to think she wasn't going to. “Lieutenant?”

“This really isn't any of my business since you and Katrina were married but... after she was freed from purgatory and you were both living in the cabin, did you...” 

“No. We did not live completely as man and wife. She wasn't well after she bore that demon. And I wanted to wait until we could focus on our marriage and until we were free from the shadow of doubt that Abraham cast over our relationship. Until Henry didn't come between us. That day never came,” he said. He wanted to sigh at the thought but contained it. He was now moving on. 

“So yesterday was your first time in how long?” 

“I would hazard to guess... close to 233 years, eight months, three weeks, and two days,” he answered 

“That's a guess? What, were you looking at the clock?” Abbie asked, propping herself up once more to look at his face. 

“Not exactly. Okay, I glanced quickly at the clock,” he said, shrugging his shoulders. “But a man knows these things. And you?”

“It's been quite a dry spell but nothing like that.”

“Lest we forget, I was dead for part of that time,” he pointed out.

“You certainly aren't anymore,” Abbie said. 

“No, I'm most certainly not and for that I'm thankful.”

“So am I,” she said, kissing him. It was a slow, lingering kiss, a beautiful counterpoint to the vigorous sex they just had against the wall. It only ended when his stomach growled. 

“I didn't factor in meals when I said we should spend the day in this room,” Crane said. 

“It is a bed and breakfast. I'm sure I can sneak something up here. Or do you want to get dressed so we can go out and eat somewhere--” 

“Absolutely not!” he said, pulling her close again. “I plan on spending the day looking at you just like this.” His stomach growled again. “But perhaps you could quickly put on some clothes... it would go faster if you got dressed... and go find some biscuits? And tea! Don't forget the tea.”

“Yeah, I don't want you to get weak. I haven't even started with the things I plan to do to you,” Abbie said, wriggling out of his arms and off the bed. She didn't get more than one step away before he pulled her back on the bed. 

“Maybe the tea can wait.” 

~*~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter Two Notes: This took a little longer to post than I thought. I'd say it was a busy week but really, it was a horrible week. Sick family members, a funeral, some teenage heartbreak (not mine obviously because I'm old but I got to feel the pain nonetheless) and a backache (this was mine) that will. not. stop. 
> 
> All careless and stupid errors are mine. Some of this was written while I was on painkillers. So some of it is as new to me as it is to you! :)
> 
> Find me over on the [tumblr](http://like_bunnies.tumblr.com/).


	3. And Buy My Love a Sword of Steel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I fought for her until I knew I couldn't win. I will fight for you, Abbie. I will never let anything happen to you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  ~~Let's just assume I've never been to Oxford.~~ Now I have! I will edit this eventually to make any changes. But I have been to the internet! All mistakes are of course my own.

~*~

They managed to spend a day and a half in their room. Crane wanted to go out to dinner and then to see a choral performance at the Merton College Chapel before they had to take the train back to London and get ready to go back to the States. Abbie had fun dressing him for their evening out, glad that he had finally trimmed his beard and pulled his hair back. He put up with her joking about his many pieces of clothing only because he knew that later, she'd be pulling them off of him piece by slow, cumbersome piece. Meanwhile, he would have her out of that dress and naked before him in less than a minute. The thought almost made him want to skip the chapel. 

When they entered the chapel, Abbie took his hand and joked about being “sinners in the hands of an angry God.” 

“A little before my time but I'm glad you've now read it,” Crane replied, looking at Abbie with an arched eyebrow but not letting go of his lover's hand. 

They listened to the performance and although it wasn't necessarily Abbie's thing, she knew how much he loved music and was happy with how he enjoyed being back in this place, hearing voices and words that transcended time. They wandered around the chapel afterward, and he pointed out all the things that were different, from the tile floor to the new pipe organ. Crane expounded on a lot of the little details and she just listened to his voice, nodding her head at the right time, but mostly letting him muse about time and tide and the changes we all go through. It was a while before he was ready to go and Abbie was sure the person in charge of the chapel was glad to see them finally go. 

They walked around, enjoying the cool evening air, and stopped at a pub for a pint. Crane seemed less out of place here no matter how he was dressed than he ever did in Sleepy Hollow. The place was filled with mostly students but strangely he seemed to fit right in, commenting once that the evening would have been perfect if only they had karaoke. Maybe it was his accent that made him seem like he belonged here. Maybe it was the age of so many of the buildings. After a few more rounds, they decided to walk back to their bed and breakfast. 

“I don't mean for these words to hurt you, considering the new status of our relationship, but I love... loved... Katrina. When I met her, I could never have even imagined someone like you would ever be in my life, considering the time and the place. But now, you are. You're so beautiful and smart and successful. You truly are the American dream,” Crane said, and Abbie laughed, squeezing his hand in hers. “That amuses you?”

“No, it's just something someone said when I was back in your time,” Abbie said, smiling at the memory. “He said I was the American dream which seemed so far out of the realm of possibility in 1781 considering a few wanted to put me up for auction.” 

“Surely it must have been Franklin who felt you were the dream.” Abbie had already told him about most everything that had happened when Katrina's Traveler spell pulled her back to 1781. She told him how even then their unusual bond saved them. And got her back to now, which was good considering the whole Franklin thing. 

“Of course it was Franklin. Crane, you know I would never expect you to forget about your past. She was your wife and the mother of your child and what you and I are now can't change that. I love you and part of loving you is not wanting to see you in pain,” Abbie said. 

“I fought for her until I knew I couldn't win. I will fight for you, Abbie. I will never let anything happen to you.”

“I'm pretty good at taking care of myself.”

“I know that but I will always be by your side. I will fight with you until this is over.”

He stopped walking and did something decidedly modern. He pulled her into his arms and held her tight while others passed them by, some turning their heads to look at them, this mismatched pair brought together through time and destiny and love. He didn't care who looked. She grabbed double fistfuls of woolen fabric as she clung on to him, wrinkling his coat. 

“I'm so glad I found you, Lieutenant Mills,” he said. She shivered in the night air when she let him go. “Here, take my coat.” 

He shrugged his coat off of his shoulders and held it so she could put it on. She was swimming in the fabric, the coattails falling past her knees. 

“I'll try not to trip over it,” Abbie said, wrapping it around her. It smelled of Crane and she could live in in that comforting scent forever. Just the smell of him on the wool sent shivers down her spine and a warmth flooded in, spreading rapidly between her legs. She had no idea how far they were from their room but there was no way she was going to get caught messing around outside, like some drunken college girl on a late night date. 

Crane stared at her and his eyes were filled with a burning want and desire. He was getting hard just looking at her and shifted to hide it in the fabric of his breeches. Between that and sensing what Abbie was feeling – but not caring too much about the drunken college girl part – he took her hand and pulled her down a dark and narrow alley. 

“I know where we can go,” he said. He was in his element here, even after all this time. Then again, Crane could always adapt quickly. Except to skinny jeans. 

“How many women did you bring back here?” Abbie asked as they went further down a few lanes and behind a building she was sure was older than any she'd ever seen in her life. 

“Do you really want to know the answer to that question, Lieutenant?” he asked, spinning her so her back was against a brick wall. 

“No. Yes. I don't know.”

“I didn't know that many women who would do such a questionable thing with a gentleman... until I met you, Miss Mills,” he joked and she swatted him playfully on the arm. He went to his knees and started to hike up the hemline of her short black dress, the fabric making a soft crinkling sound as he pushed it higher. Abbie pressed her hands against his shoulders and he paused. 

“Crane, are you sure about this?” she asked, turning her head both directions as if she was expecting someone or something to pop out at any moment. She could hear voices in the distance but it didn't appear that anyone was going to happen upon them. But it was England and CCTV was everywhere. 

“This is the one thing in the world I am sure about,” he said, her dress now at her waist. Under his coat, no one would be able to see anything anyway. He tugged her panties down over her heels and stuffed them inside one of his coat pockets. She wasn't going to change her mind now, voyeurs be damned. 

Crane's fingers dipped between her thighs, gently circling her clit until she moaned and found herself settling down on his hand. She wanted more... something. More everything. He delved further back, sinking his fingers into her, his thumb taking over on her clit. Abbie rocked against his hand as he fingered her in this dark alley. Damn, how she loved his fingers. 

Gazing down at him, she found him completely entranced with what he was doing to her. Suddenly feeling her eyes on him, he looked up. His eyes were nearly black now from the lack of light and from his hunger for her. He leaned in and kissed her abdomen, fluttering soft kisses everywhere. All the while never missing a beat with his thumb and his fingers. 

In. 

Her heart was beating so hard she was sure he must have heard it. 

Out.

He had to have heard it. Had to have felt it. 

In. 

Her heart was going to explode. She was going to explode. 

Out. 

Abbie came so hard she was afraid she might break his fingers with her thighs as wave after wave of pleasure rippled through her. Sinking down on his hand and riding it out, she would have screamed if she didn't think people might come investigate. Her legs grew weak and she sucked in the cool night air. 

Crane stood up before her, looking very satisfied with himself. 

“As much as I'd like to do you up against this wall, Crane, maybe we ought to take this back to our room,” Abbie said. 

There was no hint of a question in her tone so he knew better than argue with her. No matter how good that wall looked – and that wall looked very good. And doing it with her standing up was quickly becoming one of his favorite things ever. He could wait a few minutes. How far away could they be? What was a few more minutes after all the years he went without?

He pulled down her dress and straightened his coat out on her shoulders, looking her over to make sure she was presentable. 

“Lieutenant, you really should wear my coat more often. And may I suggest next time you try it without any garments on underneath?” 

“Room, Crane. Now.” 

~*~


	4. I'll Dye My Dress, I'll Dye It Red

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “You aren't too bad yourself,” she said. “A little tall. A little pale. But not bad.”

Some of this is inspired from this scene in the episode "Pittura Infamante."

[](http://s723.photobucket.com/user/like_bunnies/media/sleepyhollowbuttons_zpssqz5lrf7.jpg.html)

 

~*~

“No.” 

Abbie gently pushed Crane's hand down as he tried to help her with the buttons on his waistcoat. Her dress was still on and she was still wearing his coat. The little slip of fabric that made up her underpants was still stuck in the pocket and she thought she might just leave them there. 

Leisurely, she worked through the buttons, looking up to see the frustration on his face. He could certainly do this faster but she wouldn't have as much fun. 

Finally, she finished with the buttons and next went to work on the cravat he was wearing. Her fingers danced near his jawline, her skin briefly touching his. She pulled the strip of fabric away and the neckline of his shirt fell open, allowing her to touch even more. Wherever their flesh met burned with desire but she wasn't going to do this any faster. Drawing her hands down the front of his shirt, she stopped at the waistband of his breeches. 

“One slight suggestion, Lieutenant...”

He couldn't control the hitch in voice as her fingers stroked down the front of his pants. 

“Yes?”

“Boots before breeches or else it gets rather difficult to uphold any appearance of decorum,” he said. Abbie pushed him back a few steps until the back of his knees hit the bed and he ended up sitting down on the edge. 

She tugged one tall, black boot off followed by the other. His stockings followed, tossed to the floor behind her. He stood up again and Abbie unfastened two buttons on his breeches. “Zippers are such a nice thing,” she murmured after she discovered another row of buttons holding them up. 

“Are you in a hurry?” he asked, giving her a sly smile. She laughed and teased him through the fabric once again, feeling him grow even harder with each touch. 

“Are you?” 

The last button popped through its buttonhole and she slid his breeches down over his slender hips. His shirt was long and was now in her way. She motioned for him to take it off and he pulled it by its collar up and over his head, tossing it to the side where the rest of his clothing was piling up. Abbie ran her fingers over his chest and nuzzled his neck. He still had on his underclothes but she'd get to that once she was done running her lips over his skin and taking in the scent of him. It matched the scent of the coat she was still wearing. 

Now he slid his coat off of her shoulders, placing it on the bed, and turned her around. Crane pulled the zipper down on the back of her dress and she let the fabric spill down her body. She stepped out of her heels, losing several inches in height as she did so, and when she turned back toward him, she found herself wrapped in his arms. Her cheek was pressed against his chest and she could hear his heart beating rapidly now, under that scar from a wound that once killed him. Crane and his improbable heart that should have been dust by now. 

“You are magnificent,” Crane said, hands traveling over her soft skin. 

“You aren't too bad yourself,” she said. “A little tall. A little pale. But not bad.”

“I'm glad you approve, Lieutenant,” he said, pulling her with him as he crawled into their bed. 

“Somehow you still have on clothing,” Abbie said. She snuggled up beside him and reached for the waistband of his drawers. A few more buttons and he was wiggling out of them and throwing them to the floor. “That's better.”

Facing each other, Crane placed a gentle kiss on her forehead and then her nose and cheeks before finally reaching her mouth. As hurried and anxious as they were before, now they were both taking their time and enjoying every second of this. 

“I could kiss you for hours,” he said, brushing his lips against hers. “Hours and hours.”

Lips met in a crushing kiss and mouths opened. His tongue explored her mouth and he felt her make that tiny noise in the back of her throat that he had come to love so much over the last few days. Crane's hands moved over her body, sliding down her back, past her tiny waist, and to her curvy, perfect bottom. He was pulling at her, wanting her. Abbie backed away from his kiss and looked him in his needy blue eyes. 

She put a leg over his hip and slowly, perfectly, he maneuvered just right so he could slip into her. She moaned, enjoying the sensation of being filled by him again. She loved the look on his face as she tightened around him. Loved the way his one eyebrow arched up when she moved so she was on top of him. She just loved him. 

His hips moved off the bed and she countered each move he made, letting him sink more into her. Abbie leaned toward him and reached for his hands against the mattress, their fingers entwined, holding each other tight. He watched her face, watched as her lips pouted just a little. Watched as she closed her eyes. Watched as she opened them again and met his gaze. 

It was that look that pushed him over the edge. He gripped her fingers, needing to hold her as he lost control of his world. Everything flashed into nothing. Nothing except Abbie and where they were joined and how much he loved her. 

She was still grinding against him, moving just so that it wasn't long before she was coming too, following right behind him. Abbie fell forward against his chest and they both struggled to catch their breath. Time stopped. Seconds and minutes didn't matter. Not right here and not right now. 

Neither of them said anything for a long time. He pulled his fingers free from hers and ran a hand down the length of her back, caressing her smooth skin. She listened to his heart beat as it slowed down now, returning to normal. She listened and smiled. 

“You know you don't have to come back with me to the States right away, don't you? I have to get back to work to pay for this trip but if you want to spend more time and explore your...”

“No, Lieutenant, I think I've seen enough of my former home. I would rather return with you and see how this newly changed relationship of ours works in my present home,” he said, still exploring her with his fingertips. “Or rather, our home? We'll have to work on that. That is, if you want to share living quarters already.”

“I'm sure we can work something out,” Abbie said. “I'm at the cabin all the time anyway when I'm not working. Or you could move into my apartment... maybe?”

“Remind me again... does your apartment have granite counter tops?” 

~*~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 4 Notes: Almost done! And things are getting even crazier around here! I've been out of town, got sick, saw a divorce attorney, went to foreclosure court... yeah. 
> 
> Since this is all fluff, I was hoping to write something more serious next time. We'll see if there is time!


	5. Oh My Baby, Oh My Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Oh, yes. We can do as much practicing as you desire,” he said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My wallpaper photo while I wrote most of this. Because it made me happy. And reminded me often of their height difference! 
> 
>  
> 
> [](http://s723.photobucket.com/user/like_bunnies/media/sh218_1893_zpsqehdjnlg.jpg.html)  
> 

~*~

“Where would you like to go next?” Abbie asked. It was a rainy morning and they were in a hotel on the edge of Heathrow. Their flight back to New York was scheduled to depart that evening and she was relishing the last few hours before they had to return to the real world. “Keep in mind it will probably take me five years to pay off this trip.”

“I do need to find employment now that evil appears to have gone silent for the time being,” Crane said. “There must be some occupation in this modern day which I could do. And don't say Starbucks barista one more time.”

He had her wrapped in his arms, enjoying this quiet morning as much as she was. This room wasn't as comfortable as the bed and breakfast but it did afford him a nice view of the airplanes coming and going. Crane couldn't imagine how one could ever grow tired of the wonder of it all. As much as he'd like to stay with Abbie in his embrace for the next week or so, he was also excited to get back in one of those flying metal tubes. 

“You didn't answer my question. Where would you like to go if you could go anywhere? There's a whole world for you to see and you can get anywhere in just a matter of hours.”

“I'd only want to go if you are at my side,” he said, drawing her closer. “Where should we go together?”

“I didn't get a chance to see much of the United States growing up. We didn't have all that many family vacations. I guess I'd like to see mountains. Big mountains. The Pacific Ocean. I imagine it would be a lot of fun to take you to Vegas,” Abbie said, laughing at the thought. “Or worse, Disney World.”

“That place with the mouse? Whatever for?”

“Your running commentary on the Hall of Presidents would be worth the price of admission,” Abbie said, rolling over so she could face him. She was half on him, fingers playing with the hair on his chest. 

“What is this Hall of Presidents?” Crane asked. 

“Animatronic figures of all the presidents – uh, talking mannequins I guess would be a way to describe it. Some get to give a speech about their time in history,” Abbie said. She'd never seen it herself but had heard about it often enough from colleagues returning from a Florida vacation. She knew enough about it to know that Crane would never be able to hold his tongue long enough to make it through the whole show. 

“Sounds like it would be a lot of hot air filling a building. I think I'd prefer the Pirates of the Caribbean,” he said, taking Abbie by surprise. 

“You've looked into this?” she asked. 

“I did indeed do the Googlenet thing for this mouse that seems to be everywhere. And although most of it seems tedious, I would rather enjoy spending a day at a 'Theme Park' with you. And someday, with our children,” he said. 

Abbie had been in plenty of relationships before, some more serious than others, but no one had ever talked about 'our children' before. And trips to Disney World with those children. 

“Crane... Ichabod...” she started and now she had his attention. 

“Oh, no. You're using my given name. Am I in trouble?” he asked, his one eyebrow arching high up his forehead. 

“I just worry about our future. About any future. You talk about kids and someday but what if we don't have someday? I can't think about bringing children into this world if it's just going to be torn apart or if you or I could die at any minute fighting this thing that's coming,” Abbie said. She rested her face upon his chest now, listening to his steady breathing, feeling the motion of it against her cheek. 

“Abigail, no one is guaranteed a future,” he said, running a comforting hand across the smooth skin of her back. “As for bringing forth children into an imperfect world, it always has been imperfect. But children give us hope and a reason to try to make it perfect. I want the world to be the best place it can be for my children.” 

“Still, I didn't grow up with the best role models. Your father sounds like he wasn't all that great, either. And your one foray into child rearing... well, we know how that turned out.”

“Yes, that didn't go well. I admit it. And to think my father was upset with the choices I made in my life. But Abbie, I want to spend as much time with just you as I possibly can. I might talk about children but I don't mean right now,” Crane said, brushing her hair from her face. 

“But we can practice?” 

“Practice?” 

“Yes. Practice making children.”

“Oh, yes. We can do as much practicing as you desire,” he said. 

Abbie moved closer and he kissed her, his lips so soft against hers. They both smelled of sweat and of each other from the two times they did this in the middle of the night and she loved his scent. She loved it when he was unwashed just as much as when he was clean and smelled of that soap he always bought from some reenactor. Lavender. She could still smell it on him. 

She pulled away from his kiss and slid down to his neck, her tongue darting out to lick his salty skin. He moaned as she teased him a little, taking one of his earlobes into her mouth and giving it a little nip. 

His hand moved between her thighs, fingers touching her expertly. She bit his ear a little harder and then went back to kissing his mouth. His fingers didn't miss a beat and she needed him inside of her. Now. 

Abbie moved so she was straddling his hips, the bedding cast aside. Crane sat up and she wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his shoulders. Somehow, in some crazy way that could only be dictated by fate, they fit together perfectly. 

He slid into her, filling her, and they moved with each other, rocking their hips back and forth in a slow, perfect rhythm. She was wrapped in his arms and it all felt so good. Abbie couldn't tell where he ended and she began and didn't know if it mattered anymore. 

All rational thoughts were gone. The only thing that remained was the two of them as one. He moved and then she moved and it all just hit in the right spot and she couldn't take her eyes off of his. Abbie was certain that she had never been so connected to anyone in her life and knew she never would be again. 

The rhythm of his movements changed and he closed his eyes. “Abbie...” he whispered and she knew he was close. And he was waiting for her. She let go of her body and her mind and on his next thrust, she was there, tightening around him with each spasm that moved through her. And he followed immediately, crying out her name again and again until it was over. 

“Now aren't you glad I do all that yoga?” she asked as they fell next to each other on the bed. Crane reached for the wrinkled sheets and pulled them up until they were covered to waist. 

“Yes, I'm beginning to see the value of your lotus pose more and more. I'll have to watch you do it more once we get home,” he said. They were both still and quiet for a while, the only noise in the room the soft hiss from the air conditioner. 

“You going to be okay once we get home?” Abbie asked, holding Crane's hand in hers. “Things are going to be different, you know? People might say things. You know, about us.”

“I'm not worried about idle gossip, Lieutenant. I have endured it before and for you, I will endure anything. We're in this together until we see it to the end. We've faced demons, witches, and wendigos. People talking certainly isn't going to harm either of us,” Crane said. 

“I want you to know that just because we're a little more than just friends now--”

“A little more?” he questioned.

“I want you to know that just because we're a lot more than just friends now, I don't expect you to be finished grieving everything you've lost. Everything you ever knew,” Abbie said. He pulled her close in his arms, holding her tight. 

“Abbie, if it weren't for you, for what we need to do together, I would have been nothing but dust in a grave for centuries now. Yes, I mourn the people I will never see again but there is nothing to do but go forward. With you. I love you,” he said, placing a gentle kiss on the top of her head. “And to maybe visit a theme park. Eventually.” 

She laughed, wishing this moment could last a little longer but an airplane home would be waiting for them all too soon. 

“I'll go anywhere with you. Except that Small World ride. I won't do that,” she said, still smiling at the thought of him somewhere filled with fake castles and balloons and children. He'd be like a very big kid himself wandering around such a place, questioning everything. 

“Why? Is this particular ride scary?” he asked.

“No, worse...”Abbie said and then went on to explain it. He couldn't help but smile. 

It was six months, one week, and six days after that frightful day, a day that changed everything forever, that he realized with Abbie by his side, it was going to be just fine. 

The End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this. I meant for it to be a little more angsty than it turned out but life is angsty enough right now! I could have gone on forever with these two but my own life is going to be busy in the next few days or weeks. And I really would like to try something with a plot. And angst. And more smutty goodness.


End file.
